Unknown Unknowns
by nb41
Summary: Steve wakes up in the hospital to a few more unknown unknowns than he'd been expecting. (Contains spoilers for Captain America: The Winter Soldier.)


For this prompt at Avengers Gen: After SHIELD collapsed, Thor can't just sit doing nothing anymore - he came to protect Midgard, and now it's more vulnerable than ever. Besides, Thor is worried about his one-time shield-brothers - Widow and Hawk were with SHILED, news are talking about unknown fate of Captain America... So somehow Thor gets himself back in the picture. EIther he just gets to DC to look for Steve, or tries to contact Stark, or SI tries to contact Jane to check up on everyone Avengers related, or someone else does - either SHIELD or HYDRA... Anything you can think about:)

Implied Jane/Thor. This came out a bit more Steve-centric, but I tried to hit the highlights of the prompt.

* * *

For the first day Steve's out more than in, because apparently there's a lot of tissue to regenerate after the bullets and the fall and the nearly drowning, and it turns out regenerating at this level is downright exhausting. There aren't many painkillers which work on him, but he's loaded down with the ones that do. He drifts through dreams involving rivers and Bucky and the sky raining fire and Pierce telling him how the world is going to end.

Most of the time when he wakes up Sam is there. Reading, working on a laptop, napping, but there next to him in one of those chairs that has to be bad for your back. On the rare occasions he's not, someone else is. Natasha, maybe a doctor or a nurse, maybe his neighbor.

He drags himself out of his most recent dream (nightmare, really; it's the train in the pass again, except this time he's the one falling) with a start. A large presence which is much too tall to be Sam is standing next to the bed, and his sleep- and drug-riddled mind translates it into someone looming over him. His first thought is _Bucky_ and his second is _Hydra_ and although they're not interchangeable they both combine into a need to react.

He tries to will his arm to do—well, who knows what, but it doesn't matter. The drugs he's on have his reflexes dialed down to more normal levels, and what starts as a heart-pounding attempt to grab at the person ends up a feeble gesture.

His eyes focus on Thor about the same time Thor speaks. "Apologies. I did not intend to wake you."

Steve almost doesn't believe it's actually Thor, because Thor's head is attached to a body sporting very typical human clothing, and the hammer he'd had with him during the Tesseract debacle is nowhere in sight. But there's no mistaking that voice, nor the sheer impact he seems to have by merely being in a room.

"You didn't." Steve tries to get his thoughts in order. "Where's Sam?"

"Natasha said he left to attend to some affairs. He will return soon."

_Natasha_. Her involvement might explain why there's no chaos in the wake of Thor's presence. But... "Natasha knew how to find you?"

"Stark brought me to Natasha. She directed me to you."

"Stark's around?"

"He was. He has returned to New York. He is keeping watch over SHIELD and Hydra, and what might come of all this."

Steve rubs at his eyes. As confusing as the information is, it's nice to hear Stark is on top of the situation in some way or another. "I had no idea you were—here. On Earth."

"Few do."

There's a distinct note of 'and that was intentional' in Thor's voice that Steve can't miss. "And Stark is one of those few?"

"He found me as a consequence of contacting Jane Foster."

Steve dredges up any memories he has associated with the name; all of them have the off-color, impersonal flavor of SHIELD reports, most concerning the New Mexico Incident. "One of the astrophysicists." Thor nods. "She was with you in Greenwich. Last year."

"Yes."

"When we didn't hear anything from you, I assumed you went back. To...Asgard."

"I did. I had matters to attend to. Then I returned."

Steve is about to ask why, because there's a wealth of emotion lurking behind Thor's calm demeanor and Steve's sure that whatever they saw in Greenwich was the tip of a gigantic iceberg. But Thor's attention moves to the door, and Steve sees Sam just stepping into the room.

"Since you didn't yell for help I'm assuming you know him," Sam says, his eyes staying on Thor. He's making no attempt to mask his wariness, but Thor doesn't look the least bit put out by the reaction.

"Yeah." Steve gestures between the two of them. "Sam, Thor. Thor, this is Sam Wilson."

Sam smiles and hesitates, like he's waiting for something. After a handful of seconds in which no one moves or says anything, he sobers. "You're serious."

Thor looks amused. Steve says, "Yeah."

Sam offers his hand, which Thor takes with a nod. "I am pleased to meet you, Sam Wilson."

"Good to meet you too." Sam looks at Thor like he doesn't know what to make of him, and since most of the images from the Battle of New York involve a lot more armor and lightning and a lot less cotton t-shirt, work boots, and denim pants, Steve can't blame him. Sam asks, "You sticking around?"

Thor flicks a glance at Steve, who nods, and Thor says to Sam, "If my presence will not be a burden."

"Hardly." Sam sits in his chair. "Romanoff and I could use the help. There's reporters and who knows who or what else trying to sneak in here non-stop. Until he's healed up enough to leave, I wouldn't mind an extra pair of eyes."

"Then I will remain as long as you have need of me."

Sam laughs and shakes his head. "Careful, with an offer like that, I'll find all _kinds_ of things for you to help with."

Thor gives Sam a wry smile and pulls up a chair. The three of them talk, but sleep is doing its best to reclaim Steve, and he starts to lose track of the conversation. Thor asks about the helicarriers ('ships' he calls them) and Sam's wings and Hydra and Bucky and Pierce and Fury and Clint. Sam admits they still haven't found Barton, who was on an assignment, and Thor says something about finding him once Steve is recovered.

Before he drifts off, the last thing Steve hears is Sam saying, "So, I've gotta ask—where's the hammer?"


End file.
